US tourism suffers 3% Asian setback in 2018

LONDON, 14 February 2019: Tourist arrivals
in the US from the Asia Pacific region fell by 3.2%* last year, according to
latest findings from ForwardKeys.

The Kilauea volcano eruption in Hawaii (a
top destination for Japanese travellers to the US) contributed to a drop in
US-bound tourism in the second half of 2018.

In addition, Chinese visitors to the US
during the year remained flat (0.0% growth) amid the ongoing trade war between
the two countries.

Asia Pacific represents a 20% market share
of US inbound travel.

On the plus-side, the ForwardKeys figures
show a 3.2% increase in European visitors to the US compared with 2017,
representing a 38% market share. But German tourists stayed away, down 8.7% on
2017.

Overall, total international tourist
arrivals in the US in 2018 showed very modest growth, up 1.0% on the previous
year.

The European nations leading the tourism
growth are Ireland, up 14.1%, Spain, up 11.8%, and Italy, up 10.5%. Elsewhere,
Brazil, up 12.8%, and Colombia, up 10.3%, helped account for a 1.3% growth from
the Americas.

New York City consolidated its position as
the top US destination for international travellers, up 2.1%. The Northeast as
whole grew by 2.8%. Fort Lauderdale, in the South, and Detroit, in the Midwest,
were the fastest-growing destinations, up 12.8% and 12.5% respectively.

ForwardKeys CEO Olivier Jager commented:
“Once again, international air travel is at the mercy of world events, natural
disasters and man-made disputes. Understanding fluctuations in tourism is vital
intelligence for business and government alike; and ForwardKeys is committed to
delivering them the most insightful data, as swiftly as possible, to aid their
decision-making.”

(*ForwardKeys’ analysis is based on stays
lasting between 1 and 21 nights.)